It Was a Dark and Stormy Night
It Was a Dark and Stormy Night is the season seven premiere episode of Full House. It originally aired on September 14, 1993. Opening Teaser Up in the attic, Jesse and Becky are excited about Nicky and Alex's first night in their new beds (see below). So much so, they plan to videotape the whole thing, to which Jesse says, "I can see it now: Nicky and Alex Katsopolis are The Young and the Tired." However, there's just one problem: As soon as the camera rolls, Jesse doesn't realize that he left the lens cover on! So Becky removes it, and surprise, surprise, they're still not there. Synopsis On the last night of camp, Steve Hale tells a scary story about a "Mud Man" named "Cropsy Maniac" to all the kids, which makes them fall asleep. While it is assumed that the camp is co-ed, only the girls' cabin is seen. Meanwhile, back at the house, Nicky and Alex are refusing to sleep in their own beds. They have been spending every night in Jesse and Becky's bed. Irritated, the couple buys new race car beds for the twins. The dilemma ends with Jesse and Becky trying to help the boys get to bed by resting with them. Tired, Jesse and Becky fall asleep, and Nicky and Alex ditch their sleeping parents for the nice "big bed." The next morning (complete with time lapse from night to day), Michelle, Stephanie, D.J., Steve and Kimmy have returned home from a summer at Camp Lakota. Michelle tells Jesse that she no longer wants Jesse to call her "Munchkin", which Jesse has affectionately called her for years, because everyone at camp gave her the nickname "Trail Mix", and she liked it. In addition, her gifts to the twins are lion masks that she made for arts & crafts, knowing that the lion is their favorite animal. Stephanie confirms that the camp is indeed co-ed, as she is anxious to write letters to all the boys whose names appear on the bracelets they gave her. D.J., however, is anxious to call Steve, as she notes that this is the longest they've been away all summer. Danny feels hurt when his daughters act like they did not miss the family one bit while they were at camp. However, they assure him that they will have time to bond after they unpack, and as they head upstairs to do just that, they sing the Camp Lakota song. Once the singing stops, Danny remarks that when Camp Metalarc was over that he could not wait to get home and kiss everything in sight, from his parents, to his bed, to his room's floor. Joey, apparently Danny's camp-mate, says that it was a day camp, to which Danny remarks, "Yeah, but it was a very long day." Upstairs in Stephanie and Michelle's room, as they unpack and unload their bags, laundry and all, D.J. comes in and tells her former roommate that she lent her a pair of plastic slippers prior to their departure for camp, asking if she remembers them and where they are. Stephanie says that she does remember, but they ended up at the bottom of the lake, and D.J. told her that they would not fit, and Stephanie says it was not her fault that D.J.'s feet were too big for those slippers anymore. Because of this, D.J. decides not to lend Stephanie any more stuff, and it quickly turns into an argument that upsets Stephanie's current roommate, who tells them to stop arguing because they are scaring Gilbert, a rabbit she brought home from camp. The two former roommates are surprised by the appearance of "floppy-eared, sniffle-nosed, carrot-breath" Gilbert, although D.J. is more surprised (due to the aforementioned quote). Michelle tells her really big sister to go easy on Gilbert because he is very sensitive about his breath, and also explains that she brought Gilbert home in her bag because she said that it was his decision to not go back into the woods, but Stephanie and eventually D.J. do not believe her one bit, as Stephanie can only muster "Oh, come on", as she rolls her eyes in disgust, but Michelle says that it is true. She says that she asked Gilbert if he wanted to go back into the woods, and imitates a rabbit when interpreting Gilbert's response. Danny enters the room, collects the laundry, and sees Gilbert. Stephanie explains that Gilbert had a broken leg when they found him at camp. They nursed him back to health, and Michelle was supposed to have released Gilbert back into the forest that Camp Lakota is in. Danny understands that Michelle wants to keep Gilbert because she is his friend (to which the studio audience reacts with "aw"); but when he tells her that he needs to be with his friends, he means forest friends; i.e. "the ones with fur and four legs, who breathe indiscriminately". Steve arrives, has a brief chat with Danny and the girls, and then takes the girls back to Camp Lakota to release Gilbert, but there is a heavy thunderstorm in the area, and they are forced into the cabin that they occupied while camp was in session, and they are depressed by how empty the cabin now looks. There is also a problem: Gilbert is not in the box that they brought with them. In fact, he chewed right through the box to escape, and a depressed Michelle said that she did not even get a chance to say goodbye (which elicits groans from the audience). Steve's car is also stuck in the mud, and then there is a power outage. Terrified of the "Mud Man"/"Cropsy Maniac", Michelle freaks out, thinking her fantasy then is about to become a reality now, but her sisters still convince her otherwise. Later, Danny and Joey show up, all muddy, causing Steve to try to beat up Joey and mistake him for the "Mud Man"/"Cropsy Maniac". Danny and Joey have brought Gilbert with them. It turns out that Gilbert was still back at the house, and then it all becomes clear as to the main reason why the girls wanted to take a trip back to Camp Lakota – Camp Lakota is a place they love. When they saw how empty it now is, they felt let down. As the power is turned back on and the rain lets up, Michelle gives one final hug to Gilbert before he is released back into the forest. At home, while everyone is enjoying s'mores from the fireplace, the girls admit that they did miss everyone a lot. This makes Danny feel a lot better, and Michelle tells Jesse that she would not mind if he starts calling her "Munchkin" again. And to add to the fun, after Danny hands Michelle her plate of s'mores, she finds it hot, so she puts it on the couch. What nobody knows is Joey walks over and unknowingly sits on the hot s'mores plate and it sticks to his pants, causing everyone to laugh out loud at him. And to add even more humor, the family tops it all off with whipped cream and a cherry. Even Comet gets in on the s'mores fun licking the mess off of Joey's pants as he runs upstairs to escape the dog, as the family laughs at his humor some more (and the audience applauds and the EP credits appear). Quotes in Stephanie and Michelle's room, both girls are unloading their laundry, as D.J. enters D.J.: Hey, Steph, do you have those plastic sandals I lent you? Stephanie: No. But I know where they are. D.J.: Great. Where are they? Stephanie: At the bottom of the lake. D.J.: scoffs I told you they wouldn't fit! Stephanie: It's not my fault you have big feet! D.J.: Well, I'm not gonna lend you any more stuff! Stephanie and her former roommate begin arguing, but all that does is upset her current roommate. Michelle: Quiet! You're scaring Gilbert! D.J.: Sorry, Michelle. We didn't mean to scare... & with Stephanie "Gilbert?" herself Floppy-eared, sniffle-nosed, carrot-breath Gilbert? Michelle: Easy. He's very sensitive about his breath. D.J.: Michelle, you were supposed to let him go at the camp. Michelle: I tried, but he didn't want to. It was his decision. Stephanie: she rolls her eyes in disgust Oh, come on. Michelle: It's true. I asked him if he wanted to go back into the woods, and he went... a rabbit ---- girls grab what appears to be a sweeper to fight off the "Mud Man/Cropsy Maniac" outside, when Steve has another idea. Steve: Don't worry girls, I was on the wrestling team for two years. how bad the situation is Uh, three years would've been better. tries wrestling the "Mud Man/Cropsy Maniac", but it just turns out to be Joey covered in mud. ---- Danny: It’s like when you go to the movies. When the show is over, you know the magic’s all gone. All that’s left is just a big empty room with a sticky floor. Trivia The episode title is a well-known phrase originally from the opening sentence of English writer 's 1830 novel Paul Clifford. More recently it is known for being a recurring phrase used by Snoopy from the Peanuts comic strip. The song played in the scene where the twins sleep with Jesse and Becky is " " by Bobby Lewis. Category:Episodes Category:Season 7 Category:Season premiere episodes